Electronic devices such as automatic dishwashers are utilized to clean and sanitize items such as dishes, utensils, and other household items placed within. Such devices utilize an electronic controlled system of cycles that undertake at least a subset of wash, rinse and dry the objects placed within. The time required to run through a standard cleaning set of cycles, however, can encompass a substantial time. Therefore, it is unusual for users to sit and wait for the device to finish. Rather, it is commonplace for users to move onto other tasks while the device operates. Often, upon returning to the device, a user is left contemplating if it was run or not. Although manual methods such as feeling for the warmth of the dishes or looking for water pooling on the top of glasses in the case of a dishwasher may give some indication, it is often difficult to tell if the cleaning cycles were run and the contents are clean. Moreover, the method is hardly foolproof For example, in the case of a dishwasher, an indication of slightly wet items may not be very helpful if the objects were rinsed prior to being loaded into the dishwasher.
Even when a user is aware that the device has completed the cleaning process, the process of unloading may become interrupted by other more pressing matters. Upon return, the user may be confronted with a partially loaded device such as a dishwasher and no idea of its clean/dirty status. Additionally, in large families or shared residences it is not unknown for an individual to open a device and remove only a subset of the retained items such as a glass, plate, or utensil that is immediately required. When another individual opens the device, they are again left attempting to discern the status of the contents. The tendency is often to simply run the device through another set of cycles to be safe. This is uneconomical and inefficient.
There have been advances in device designs to monitor the clean/dirty status of their contents, but these designs are incorporated into the physical structure of the new devices. Additionally, they are often defeated as soon as the door is opened for initial unloading and do not capture the concept of partial unloading at a first time and a further unloading at a second later time. Moreover, these devices are only available upon the purchase of a new device. The longevity of devices such as dishwashers means that these advances in technology won't find their way into the majority of people's kitchens for years to come. There are also products that may be inserted along with the dishes into the dishwasher washing compartment to indicate status. But similar to the manual checking described above, they require a physical interaction by the user that may be overlooked.
It may be desirable for an improved status indicator solution that may be installed and operated on the large number of existing devices presently operating in the market. It may also be desirable for a status indicator solution that minimizes user inputs and takes into consideration partial unloading of a device contents whether the device is new or pre-existing in the marketplace.